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From Windows XP I can see the Mint machine on the network but am prompted for a user name and password just to view the share list of that box. These shares have been created as public shares and do not require a password to access. This will occur only after creating a Samba User. This will occur only from WinXP , not Win2K or another Mint.

Steps to Reproduce

(1) I started with a clean install of Mint 7 Gnome and fully updated through mintUpdate.

I did this two different ways in an attempt to determine if this was a nautilus-share problem only.

It is interesting to note that the share definition from testparm does not match a cut and paste from smb.conf itself for share [Share]

This problem arose because I wanted to create a mix of public and private shares on the Mint box. WinXP users accessing just public shares will be forced to pass credentials just to view the available shares.

Workaround

(1) For client users with samba usernames and passwords on the target server box this is not a problem. It will be a little awkward since they will not be used to sending credentials before they see the available shares.

(2) For guests to access public shares they will have to pass credentials but they don't need samba usernames and passwords. They can view and then access shares by using:User Name: guestPassword: NULL

I have tried to find relevant posts in the ubuntu's launchpad but have as yet been unsuccessful. It's possible I'm searching in the wrong place. This might not be a samba bug but an encryption or other authorization / authentication bug.

Please add a [SOLVED] at the end of your original subject header if your question has been answered and solved.

I suspect it's actually your use of it. I guess that the "samba" username is protected, so you're coming across conflicts when managing it yourself, try a different username to achieve the desired effect. OTOH, I don't know much about samba

If you have a question that has been answered and solved, then please edit your original post and put a [SOLVED] at the end of your subject headerHint - use a google search including the search term site:forums.linuxmint.com

Not quite sure I followed that. I have two login users on the Mint Server - altair4 and tester1. You can only create samba users from local login users. In this particular case it doesn't matter which login user I create the samba user from, all that matters is that there is a samba user.

Just to be clear ( since I'm not an articulate person ) about the nature of the problem. The way it should work from WinXP ( or linux ) is this way:

My Network Places > Workgroup > Netbios Name > WinXP will ask for authentication - But only if I have created a samba user on the server box

WinXP is asking for authentication at the Netbios Name level in order to display the shares - be they public or private. I can give it my samba username and password and I will see the shares. If I select the shares I am granted access. If I don't have a samba username and password because I'm trying to access the public shares I'm stopped at the Netbios Name level. This is definately not the way it worked in Mint6.

Again, this happens only for the two WinXP boxes on my network. Not the linux or Win2K boxes on my network.

Please add a [SOLVED] at the end of your original subject header if your question has been answered and solved.

After nearly a week with this new install, the problem I described above ( as well as a large number of other unrelated errors ) just went away and then the disk failed. Installed onto a new hard disk and can't reproduce the problem.

So it was either the bad disk or the part of the computer that resides between the keyboard and the chair seat that was at fault. If I could delete this entire topic I would. A thousand pardons for not doing my homework before posting.

Please add a [SOLVED] at the end of your original subject header if your question has been answered and solved.

no worries, just glad you've got a working system and that I don't have to do any more legwork to determine what's wrong.

If you have a question that has been answered and solved, then please edit your original post and put a [SOLVED] at the end of your subject headerHint - use a google search including the search term site:forums.linuxmint.com

There were two spammers at work here, using necromancy to fly links in their signatures under the radar. Neither will be posting anything any more, I'm afraid. I'm going to lock this thread so as not to attract further incidents.